scandius
169 escape rooms
Very cool, super immersive, magical, great fun tech, lots to do, really enjoyed it!
Defenders of the Sunken Realm
Overwhelmingly positive (80 ratings)
- Escape room
- IRL
Mark as done to rate
You’ve been summoned—alone, in secret. Mr. Matthews, the eccentric leader of the Keepers of Balance, has one obsession: The Galaxy Core. It’s no longer safe, and only you can retrieve it. Armed with strange gear and an aging submarine, you plunge into the depths of a hidden ocean realm to retrieve a lost artifact. And when you return, ask yourself: What did you really bring back with you? The Galaxy Core awaits. But so does the cost.
- 2-6
- 75 mins
- Not scary
All (80)
Overwhelmingly positive
- Gameplay
- Very positive
- Atmosphere
- Very positive
- Customer service
- Very positive
Reviews
Nov 30, 2025 | Experienced Nov 30, 2025
DawsonsEscape
92 escape rooms
The submarine was amazing, felt like a Disney ride! Atlantis was gorgeous and ethereal. More physically challenging than Temple of Light. Would recommend playing this room first to better appreciate it's beauty before experiencing the over the top extra-ness of Temple.
Gameplay
Atmosphere
Customer service
Sarah was wonderful, and Connor was the perfect embodiment of his role.
Particularly interesting or different
Yes
Story
Difficulty
Medium
More physically challenging than puzzley challenging
Game tech
High tech
Scary
Not scary
Was anything broken?
No
Live actors
Yes
Physically active
Very
Accessibility
Lots of stairs, at least two people need to be able to climb
Easy to find location
Yes
Parking
Easy
CuriosityRules
63 escape rooms
Very very high quality set design and immersion. These guys clearly prioritized customer experience and it shows. Thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, and the story and puzzle path were cohesive.
T
TheSkis
7 escape rooms
Super fun room and game play. Loved the original puzzles and immersive atmosphere. Top notch all around. Can't wait to experience their other rooms.
Gameplay
Atmosphere
Customer service
Particularly interesting or different
Yes
Story
Difficulty
Hard
Game tech
High tech
Scary
Not scary
Was anything broken?
No
Live actors
Yes
Very memorable part of the gameplay Cole was awesome
Physically active
Very
Highly enjoyed the climbing / crawling aspects of the game
Easy to find location
Yes
Parking
Easy
R
Rjschonekas
22 escape rooms
The only reason this is my second favorite escape room to date is because I also played their other room (Temple of Light). Just incredible! Do this first and then Temple if you like escape rooms at all.
Gameplay
Atmosphere
Customer service
Difficulty
Medium
B
Bigpapajoe
11 escape rooms
Great game and set design. Again like Temple of Light a lot about story and getting through the game not just the puzzles or time watching. Staff is great
Gameplay
Atmosphere
Great set design
Customer service
Staff super friendly and Sara our GM was great.
Particularly interesting or different
Yes
Story
Difficulty
Medium
Game tech
High tech
Ideal number of players
3
We were a group of 2. Good for 2-5 players
Scary
Not scary
Minimum age
12
Was anything broken?
No
Live actors
Yes
Physically active
Somewhat
Accessibility
Had to crawl in a tunnel and climb a mini tower
Easy to find location
Yes
Parking
Easy
t
the4casters
57 escape rooms
Amazing set design! One of my favorites! Such high quality design.
Gameplay
Atmosphere
Customer service
Game tech
High tech
blountwil2
170 escape rooms
Playing Sunken Realm right after Temple of Light is a very interesting comparison, as they are both wildly different while sharing a lot of the same DNA. The spaces in Sunken Realm were less varied than Temple, but no less beautiful and detailed. On the flip side, the puzzles in Sunken Realm were much stronger and more interesting than in Temple. Sunken Realm was also a bit of a roller coaster of quality - some moments were extremely cinematic and well done, while others were more rough around the edges and felt like they needed some tuning. I think Sunken Realm was still an awesome experience worth doing, but it didn’t quite live up to the level that Temple of Light introduced.
Gameplay
Atmosphere
Customer service
Particularly interesting or different
Yes
Story
Difficulty
Medium
Game tech
High tech
Scary
Not scary
Was anything broken?
No
Live actors
Yes
Physically active
Very
Easy to find location
Yes
Parking
Easy
K
KOB (Owner)
Thanks for the feedback. They are very different games for sure. One of our goals is to create a universe where all games belong, but they can also stand alone on their own as well. You don't need to play one for the next to make sense. And if you don't like temple games, there are other themes our players can enjoy. All while staying in the overall story of The Keepers of Balance. If you are interested in sharing more feedback on some of the areas you felt were a bit rough, I'd love to listen. If you choose, you can reach me directly at [email protected]
Oct 22, 2025
sc3786
54 escape rooms
Fun room, very immersive, lots of tech and it all worked.
Gameplay
Atmosphere
Customer service
K
KOB (Owner)
Thanks for the review. Nothing worse than when there is lots of broken tech!
Oct 22, 2025
D
Dadone
4 escape rooms
Absolutely incredible room! Beautiful set, highly immersive game play, outstanding puzzles, great acting, surprise ending…I really don’t know what more you can ask for out of a room. This room truly has it all! Keepers of Balance set out to raise the bar of escape rooms and they’ve done just that. We had smiles on our face the whole time. I’ve done over 110 escape rooms and it’s really hard to image a room offering more than this one. If you live in Charlotte, do it! You won’t be disappointed. If you don’t live in Charlotte, it’s worth the trip! Balance is fast becoming a destination experience for escape room fanatics.
Gameplay
Game play was on point!
K
KOB (Owner)
I'm biased but the twist ending is really exceptional. Credit goes to our staff who came up with the idea. We have 4 or 5 more games we are planning to open in this space, and they only get wilder!
Oct 22, 2025
